JAPANESE COAL.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 2941, 21 May 1891, Page 4

JAPANESE COAL.

'I'm; Sydney Daily Telegraph ot a l.ite (lute says : The Japanese coai ir.iii's, whose development received sueh a great impetus during tho last Nrwoast.lo .strike, are new being In|iy drawn on for the requirements df the Australian continent. Two S |,uncis, the Charters Towers and tie' Ali.erto, ure well on their way to ,Mril'ourne with between «SOOO and in ii M»Kins of Japanese coal for the use of the Victorian railways. Another f; (iMiiier, the i'athan, is bringing down over '2000 tons, and this will alio probably go to one. of the southern ports. Another large cargo carrier, the .Mogul, having a capacity of nver lOuO tons, is similarly commissioned co bring Japanese coal to Australia. There arc other charters of which no local advice is obtainable, ;iiml it may bo safely estimated that between b,OOO and '20,000 tons of Japanese coal will liiid their way to this country within a month. It is obvious that such an inrlux must involve a heavy direct and indirect loss ti) these colonies, especially to New i- outli Wales, which has coal at her very doors. Apart from the loss of wages to miners, there is the extra expense to which the community as •a whole is subjected, and the large amount of money which will have to go out of the country instead of being applied to a legitimate circulation of benefit in our midst. As a contrast to the present importation of coal from Japan it may be mentioned that only a few years ago coal was being sent from Newcastle to Japan, and the freight by vessels amounted to not less than 50s a ton Now the Japanese mines, which have been developed at the expense, of these colonies, to a very large extent, are being worked to the exclusion of our miners.